Oregon fishing reports

Willamette Valley/Metro- The bonus 2-day mainstem Columbia River opener produced poorly for most anglers over the weekend. Bonneville Dam counts indicate the bulk of the spring chinook run has passed the area. Steelhead will remain the main focus for bank anglers but catches not likely to ramp up until late June. The Willamette River remains challenging to spring chinook anglers. Salmon numbers over the falls indicate a steady flow of fish but results downriver continue to disappoint, except for the occasional flurry at Oregon City. Some fish are being caught from St. Helens and Kelly Point, all the way up to Willamette Falls but steady to good fishing has yet to be seen. As many fishermen contemplate the peak of the run, others are turning to other fisheries such as shad and catch and release sturgeon fishing, which continue to bend rods from the lower Multnomah channel to Oregon City. It’s as if the sturgeon anticipated the arrival of the shad and started staging in the feeding lanes two weeks before the first shad made an appearance. The dedicated salmon anglers who continue to work the lake line, sand bar, garbage hole and Meldrum have been having consistent run-ins with sturgeon. Right now, fishermen could hook a chinook, a steelhead, a sturgeon, a shad or even a sea lion, on the lower river. The shad are in their peak now, with hog lines and randomly anchored boats dotting the rivers length. With the water level dropping over the past week, prospects for rainbows, cutthroat and summer steelhead are good on the McKenzie. Fish the south Santiam for summer steelhead and the possiblity of a spring Chinook hookup as numbers are increasing. Historically, this is an excellent week for anglers on the Clackamas River. Although steelhead fishing has been steady, the springer fishing has been inconsistent. With near optimum water conditions, anglers would be hard pressed to find a better alternative in the Willamette Valley. Summers are here in good numbers from the mouth to Rivermill and a few springers are being caught daily. Angling pressure has increased with the anticipation of the first red hot day and guides and anglers in the know will start stacking numbers as we approach peak time. Traditional springer haunts like Henry's, Bud Stones, Riverside Park and Carver will kick out springers from now through the end of June if the water stays up. Summers will be spread further up river with the best holding water ranging from Carver up to McIver Park. The Sandy River appears to be having a better year all around than the previous two, with both springers and good numbers of summer steelhead available for bank anglers and boaters alike. Good catches of summer steelhead are coming from Cedar creek and Revenue Bridge, but fish should be well distributed throughout the system. With very little "salmon" holding water below Dabney Park, anglers might better focus their efforts from Oxbow Park down To Dabney for salmon. The deeper holes with depths of eight feet or more will dole out the springers on a more consistent basis, while steelhead will be found in the quicker moving water of 3 to 8 ft. Northwest – After a less-than-impressive week of salmon fishing despite a good tide series, salmon fishing on Tillamook Bay remains fair at best. Fishing is due to pick up for Tillamook Bay anglers however with early June often supporting some of the best catches of the season. Anglers will have the choice to work the upper bay on the extreme minus tides in the morning or the troll herring on the soft afternoon tides along the jetty. Both should produce good catches this week. There are still a few days left to register for the Tillamook Estuary Project’s Bounty on the Bay fishing tournament at www.tbnep.org. No measureable precipitation is in the forecast, keeping driftboaters from becoming inspired for a float in pursuit of salmon or a rare summer steelhead on the north coast. The Trask will remain a top prospect however with the tidewater stretches likely to produce the best results under these conditions. Bottomfishing out of Garibaldi remains excellent with good ling-cod catches still coming from Three-Arch Rocks off of Oceanside. Nearshore halibut remain scarce however but the offshore forecast for this last 3-day spring all-depth opener (Thursday – Saturday) should produce easy limits for smaller sized flatfish. Southwest – Over the past weekend, charters out of central Oregon ports provided mostly limits of rockfish and ling cod with about half the anglers taking nearshore halibut on Sunday, May 27th. Ocean chinook fishing was not productive over the past weekend with most boats failing to connect. Beaches on the south coast are producing good catches of pinkfin surf perch, some limits and often in just a couple of hours. Trout season is open in the southwest with most ocean tributaries producing sea-run cutthroat trout. Bait is allowed in tidewater with lures and flies effective above. Winchester Bay is producing limits of pinkfin surf perch which are entering on their spawning run. With the water level of the mainstem Umpqua dropping, spring Chinook fishing is good will improve around Elkton. Springers are also being taken in the lower North Umpqua. Charters out of Gold Beach took limits of halibut on two of three days during the all-depth opener last week. Rockfish and ling cod results have been excellent with a 70-pound nearshore halibut bonus taken on Memorial Day. Spring Chinook catches have been spotty on the lower and middle Rogue but have been improving over the past week on the upper river as flows have moderated. Fishing for sea-run cutthroat trout has been good in tidewater on the Chetco River. The Pacific halibut fishery south of Port Orford has been producing fish. Fishing was great last week for large Diamond Lake trout but midges are starting to hatch which can be problematic for unprepared anglers. The bite has waned as trout gorge on these bothersome bugs. Eastern – Salmonflies and Golden Stones are thick on the Deschutes from Warm Springs down. The fishing is reported as excellent but usually tapers off as redsides become stuffed with insects. Crooked River is in excellent shape and is fishing well with multiple hatches taking place every day. The Wallowa River fished well at the opener and is in good shape. Warm weather will raise levels, however. Wallowa Lake is fishing week for fly anglers using nymphs or streamers. SW Washington – The Cowlitz remains the best option for spring chinook anglers and catches of summer steelhead are starting to improve. Salmon are starting to concentrate in greater numbers between the hatcheries. On Tuesday, fishery managers closed the Lewis River to the retention of all spring chinook (hatchery and wild) due to low returns back to the hatchery. The river remains open to summer steelhead. Wind River and Drano Lake anglers are seeing a slowing of action as dam counts slow. Effort will re-focus in the upper reaches of these drainages where managers have increased the daily bag limit because the respective hatcheries have exceeded their egg take needs.

Oregon fishing report

Willamette Valley/Metro- Fishery managers met on Wednesday to discuss additional fishing options for lower Columbia sport anglers over the Memorial Day weekend. After much deliberation, officials decided to re-open the lower river below Bonneville Dam for spring chinook on Saturday and Sunday before reassessing the run again on Tuesday of next week. High flows however will likely keep catch rates in check. Last week’s unusually warm weather brought the Willamette's water temperature up to 60 degrees, pushing the fish on the move looking for cooler, more oxygenated water. Springers were still brought in but at a fraction of the catch rate from the previous week. The lower Multnomah Channel still seemed to shine brighter than other popular salmon haunts upriver but the pressure and the catch rate had noticeably declined. Reports from the head of the channel averaged about one fish for 7 rods most days last week. The Portland harbor to Willamette Park put out the occasional fish but Sellwood has been very slow. Upriver, Oregon City anglers were faced with little current and warm water, but any salmon that was unlucky enough to get hooked was being ambushed by a California Sea Lion. Shad have arrived in droves for Oregon City anglers, providing ample sport and quality crab bait. This fishery will go on strong through mid-June and some years lasts till July 4th. Anglers who have been bringing their sturgeon gear along are also being rewarded with decent "catch and release" action. Spring chinook and summer steelhead are both available on the Clackamas in good catchable numbers. Steady flows with good water color has been the norm but pressure has remained relatively light. A handful of spring chinook have been caught here, but summer steelhead are still the dominant catch. The growing guide presence on the Clackamas indicates two things, the presence of springers and the slow fishing on the Willamette. Expect the boat traffic to increase in the coming week as the springer run gets underway. The lower river from Carver down to the mouth will carry most of the sled traffic, while the Feldheimers to Carver stretch will be the best bet for drift boaters. Power boats rule the lower reaches so drift boat anglers looking for a quiet, lazy drift should plan accordingly. Stick to the upper stretch, but sometimes a late afternoon drift on the lower river can often be tolerable if not pleasant. By mid-June when the water level drops, the drift boat becomes a valuable tool and the sleds start seeing more driveway time. Summer Steelhead are making a good showing this year on the Sandy and anglers who know the holding spots are catching their share. Since the removal of Marmot Dam, the river from Revenue Bridge down to Dabney State park has the best holding water. From Dabney on down, expect most of the traditional deeper holes to be a fraction of their historic depth as silt from behind the now absent dam has found a new home downriver. Still, some opportunity can be found down low but expect the fish to be in more of a migration mode rather than in a holding pattern. Plunking in travel lanes is a good approach and will account for decent numbers especially in higher flows. The river from the I-84 bridge down to the deadline at the mouth continues to kick out a few springers to trollers and back-trollers. As the Columbia continues to hold above 10 ft. on the gauge at Vancouver, this stretch will continue to see some action. The McKenzie should fish well as it starts to drop in the coming weekend. Trout fishing is good and summer steelheading is improving. The water is up this week on the North Santiam but is forecast to drop by the weekend while the South Santiam is predicted to rise through Saturday, dropping in the week to come, providing springer and steelhead opportunities. Northwest – After a week of productive fishing in lower Tillamook Bay, the upper reaches are only producing an occasional fish to trollers. The fish are running between 17 and 22 pounds however but recent rains may send the bulk of the estuary fish into district rivers. Tides remain favorable to fish the upper bay into the weekend. The slight rise in river levels should stimulate catches on the Trask, Wilson and Nestucca in that order. The Trask receives the most hatchery plants and will likely produce the best results. Backtrolled plugs and bait should produce the best with both bank and boat anglers having fair access to these quality fish. Tillamook is in peak season now and fish should be well distributed in area rivers and the estuary. Although action will remain sporadic, quality fish should remain available in good numbers through the first week of June. Although forecasters botched the Sunday ocean forecast, halibut, rockfish and salmon anglers got out over the weekend and scored good catches of all species. Crabbing was fair at best with most pots averaging just 1 to 2 keepers per pot for a long soak. The wind and wave forecast for the 3rd three-day opener for halibut on Thursday indicate anglers may have fair seas to recreate in. Trout anglers can once again target cutthroat trout beginning Saturday with a 2-fish bag limit. Although it seems the population isn’t as prolific as it was last year, fish should be available on most north coast streams but larger fish are commonly found in the estuary ecosystem at this time of year, feeding on salmon fry and small baitfish. Southwest – Offshore bottom fishing has been excellent for rockfish and good for lingcod. Ocean crabbing has improved with pots producing near-limits. Crabbing has been slow in Winchester Bay but shows sign of improvement. Rockfishing has been good from the south jetty. Salmon fishing has slowed on the Umpqua with levels rising. Action should pick up as the river drops over the coming weekend. Plug-pullers and backbouncers should score chinook. Spring chinook fishing was slow over the past weekend on the lower Rogue. With rain showers and cool weather this week, prospects should improve. Fishing has been spotty on the middle river while the upper Rogue has been good whenever outflow from Lost Creek isn't excessive. Boats returned to the Port of Brookings with early season, ocean-caught chinook over the past week. This fishery is expected to turn on in June. Diamond Lake has been fishing very well, providing eight-fish limits of large, fat trout to most anglers. Eastern – The salmonfly hatch is underway on the middle Deschutes and redsides are keying in on them. The lower river will soon be awash in salmonflies as well. Get there before trout are too stuffed with big bugs to be interested in angler's offerings. Crooked River levels are excellent with hatches ongoing all afternoon and into the evening. Wallowa Lake is fishing fair but steady for kokanee with larger fish hard to come by. Green Peter is fishing well for trout and kokanee. Kokanee fishing has been very slow at Wickiup. SW Washington – The Cowlitz, Kalama and Lewis Rivers are peaking for spring chinook although the Cowlitz is clearly the best option. These fisheries should remain viable for another 2 weeks but the Cowlitz will remain a top bet with summer steelhead readily available too. Catch rates on the Wind River and Drano Lake remain good with a fish for every 3 rods on average. Adult salmon passage at Bonneville is slowing and will likely subsequently slow in these fisheries as well. Bonneville shad anglers are scoring good numbers in shallow water.

Oregon fishing report

Willamette Valley/Metro- Dam passage at Bonneville remains good and fishery managers recently downgraded the predicted spring salmon run from well over 300,000 fish to just about 200,000 returning adults. Although the lower Columbia will remain closed to the taking of adult chinook, it opens today to angling for adipose fin-clipped steelhead, adipose fin-clipped chinook jacks (between 12 and 24 inches) and shad. The daily bag limit is two steelhead plus five adipose fin-clipped chinook jacks. Anglers are likely to intercept more salmon than steelhead this time of year. Near perfect conditions early last week contributed to a consistent catch of spring chinook from top to bottom on the Willamette River. Warmer temperatures were fine for the onset but the continued hot weather has slowed the fishing a bit. Reports are good from the Multnomah Channel but successful anglers need to know the water well. The head of the Multnomah Channel has been slow but has been putting out small numbers of fish for a slug of boats. The harbor, Willamette Park and Sellwood all are putting out small numbers for the effort. Oregon City back trollers had the best success last week, but the looming sea lions made it very challenging at times just to boat a fish. There seems to be two or three of the mammals working each popular fishing haunt from the falls on down. There is quite an abundance of sturgeon in the area below the falls and salmon anglers are incidentally catching a handful each day. While the number of summer steelhead caught on the Clackamas has dipped, springers are starting to show often enough to warrant fishing here. Many of the top guides have been spotted here and the word is out that the springers are in. With the water temperature in the high 40’s, the Clackamas is still a ways off from being prime, but with the warming trend, prime time is near. Some summers are still being taken from the upper stretch from Rivermill down to Barton and springers are being taken from the lower river favorites like Carver, the Japanese Garden, Coffee's, the Winery and High Rocks. The Sandy River is fishing well. Both spring chinook and summer steelhead are present and being caught daily. Most of the steelhead action is from Dabney Park on up to Cedar Creek, while the salmon are holding in the lower river for now. Herring and prawn trollers are still catching a few at the mouth and a handful have been taken on the drift from Oxbow Park to Lewis and Clark State Park. When fishing the lower river, be sure you are fishing over a rocky or gravel bottom. There is still plenty of silt and sand left over from the dam removal and anglers have found the rocky spots are providing higher success rates. Steelhead and salmon will not hold over a sand or silt bottom. Lower McKenzie fly fishers have been doing well on nymphs. Hatches will pick up this week with warmer weather. South Santiam levels are good and improving with steelhead and springer numbers increasing. Over 550 summer steelhead have been counted at Foster Dam. Northwest – Spring chinook are beginning to enter Tillamook Bay in good number. Weak tides focused effort near the jetty tips early this week and fish from 14 to 30 pounds have been taken recently. Charlie and Winnie Payne of Newport took 12 and 20-pounders on Monday, fishing herring on the bottom near the Coast Guard Tower on Monday. The group landed 4 hatchery springers for 6 chances with the most opportunities on the second half of the outgoing tide. Upper bay anglers are likely to score this weekend. Area rivers remain low although the color is good. Springers are likely present in fair numbers in the Trask and Wilson but the bulk of the run should remain in the bay for weekend anglers. Another rain freshet isn’t forecasted until next week. Summer steelhead should also be available in limited numbers on the Wilson and Nestucca systems. All-depth halibut seekers didn’t have much opportunity to pursue their quarry until Saturday, the last day of the first 3-day opener. Limits came easy but the fish weren’t large. No sign of significant near-shore halibut success lately but effort will ramp up as seas calm. Bottomfishers out of the mouth of the Columbia scored easy limits of rockfish off of the sunken jetty on Tuesday. Lingcod were plentiful as well but the rockfish were so thick that many had to be released before attaining your lingcod limit. The sturgeon opener on the lower Columbia was less than impressive last Saturday. Shakers were the rule and not many of those in the current high, cold water. This fishery likely won’t take off until later in June, as it did last year. Another round of minus tides begins over the weekend. Razor clam digging was excellent on the last series and will likely produce good catches again on this one. The best digging should be Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Southwest – High winds kept south coast boats at port on the all-depth halibut opener. Conditions improved to allow fishing over the past Saturday with catches of halibut reported as very good. The next all-depth opportunity is May 17-19. Rockfish catches slowed out of central Oregon ports early this week but lingcod fishing has continued to yield limits. Ocean crabbing has been fair but steady. Crabbing has been slow to fair but improving in Winchester Bay. Jetty anglers are taking good numbers of rockfish. Spring chinook catches have been fair to good on the mainstem Umpqua around Elkton. Springers are also being hooked on the lower North Umpqua. Chinook fishing is slow in Coos Bay but will pick up in coming weeks. Crabbing has been fair. Boats out of Gold Beach and Port Orford have been taking limits of lingcod and rockfish. Water on the lower Rogue is clearing, in the mid-50’s and producing regular hookups for boaters using anchovy-spinner combos. Results for chinook have been slow on the middle river despite good numbers of fish. Back-trollers are hooking springers on the upper Rogue. When boats have been able to get out of the Port Of Brookings, rockfishing has been excellent while lingcod catches have been fair to good. Ocean chinook is open but slow this early in the season. Diamond Lake historically fishes best immediately following ice-out and recent results confirm that fact. Many are taking Oregon's most generous lake limit of eight trout averaging 16 inches.

Oregon fishing report

Willamette Valley/Metro- As chinook begin to pour over Bonneville Dam, managers will be keeping a close eye on overall counts before providing a run-size update. Managers are no longer confident that the pre-season prediction is accurate but a sizeable return is still likely. No further sport opportunity is likely in the near future but in these high flows, Columbia fish can sometimes supplement catches in the lower Multnomah Channel and salmon action there could easily continue into July this year. Trolled herring draws the most bites in this fishery. With the continued high water, spring chinook fishing has been spotty and the fish have been scattered from Scappoose to Oregon City. Water clarity remains good and the standard herring/flasher will produce. The prawn bite has been building and with water temperatures reaching 53 degrees, spinners will soon be taking fish regularly too. Summer steelhead are also showing up consistently in the catch with most being caught by plunkers at Meldrum Bar. The California sea lions also have a strong presence throughout the river so anglers need be aware of the risks when angling. In the Oregon City stretch, some reports indicate that nearly half of the salmon hooked are stolen by sea lions. When a fish is hooked, all anglers can do is try to remain inconspicuous by not standing up and waving the net around. Also muscle the fish to the boat as quick as possible and when you do have a hatchery fish in the net, pull it in the boat immediately as more and more nets are being destroyed or taken while your catch is hanging over the side. Cool water temperatures and high flows will keep the springers from entering the Clackamas in any numbers but the summer steelhead are not letting that slow them down. The summers are abundant here this season and anglers are getting their share but pressure remains fairly light. Fish are spread from the mouth to Rivermill Dam but the Feldheimer's to Carver stretch will likely produce best. When the water temperature reaches 52, spring chinook will enter in better numbers. Both spring chinook and summer steelhead are here in decent numbers and the Sandy River remains a solid "Plan B" if you are looking for a quiet alternative to the Willamette. Pressure has been light, but local anglers have been faring well for summers and a small handful of springers have been taken from Oxbow down. Sand shrimp is the bait of choice for both springers and summers either back trolled, drifted or fished under a bobber. Trolling prawn's and herring at the mouth below I-84 is also a good bet, especially when the Columbia flows remain high. An unusually wet spring has created challenging conditions on the McKenzie but fishing for native rainbows and cutthroat is good when conditions have periodically moderated. It looks good this week. The North Santiam will remain high doe to snowmelt this week. Northwest – In Tillamook Bay, spring chinook are being caught with surprising regularity for this early in the season. Salmon are being taken on occasion from the hatchery hole on the Trask as well as an occasional one for the rare angler on the Wilson. The upper bay has produced a few fish and the lower bay is putting out an occasional one as well. The strong tide series we’re currently on keeps most motivated anglers fishing in the upper reaches of the estuary with spinners and herring producing the best catches. The Trask is likely to produce the best catches this early in the season although with dropping flows, fish are more likely to remain in the estuary than make a run into the district’s rivers. The Hatchery Hole on the Trask however may continue to produce catches in the early morning hours. Eggs and shrimp will fare best. Although pressure is light, an occasional summer steelhead is coming from the Wilson and Nestucca Rivers. Hard-core steelheaders will wait another month however when lower flows make targeting this quarry more productive. Although a minus tide hampered early morning bar crossings, anglers interested in the bounty offshore out of Garibaldi did well for bottomfish and crab early this week. Salmon, both spring chinook and offshore California stock are coming with more regularity. Early next week poses a better opportunity as tides soften. Southwest – Chinook fishing offshore has been contingent on ocean conditions. When boats can get out and find fish, it's been fair to good. Nearshore halibut has been producing fish up to 80 and 90 pounds. The all-depth halibut opener begins May 10th through 12th and is expected to be productive if ocean conditions cooperate. Offshore bottom fishing has been producing reliable limits of rockfish and near-limits of lingcod. Surf perch fishing is productive and has yielded some limits on the south coast whenever ocean swells moderate. Winchester bay has remained slow for crabbing and sturgeon fishing. Spring chinook catches are improving around Elkton with the mainstem Umpqua forecast to be dropping this week. A 36-pounder was landed Monday this week. Steelheading is fair to good for late winters on the North Umpqua. Boats launching out of Gold Beach have enjoyed excellent results for bottom fish. Spring chinook catches have been fair with the occasional very good day on the lower Rogue. Spinner/anchovy rigs have been most effective. A few fresh steelhead were taken recently. Spring chinook catches are starting to pick up on the middle Rogue. Migration lanes on the upper Rogue will be producing springers now that the flow is finally stable. Offshore chinook fishing was slow at the opener out of the Port of Brookings but will improve in weeks to come with 80,000 springers forecast to return to the Klamath system. Boats are soon expected to be able to launch on the partially-thawed waters of Diamond lake. The surface is no longer safe for ice fishing. SW Washington – Catches of spring chinook and summer steelhead are starting to ramp up on the Cowlitz. Most of the action is taking place near the salmon hatchery but with peak season coming on, anglers will get more concentrated as the returning adults do. The Kalama and Lewis Rivers will also see a jump in angling success as flows moderate. Returns to these systems aren’t as strong as the Cowlitz but neither is the effort. With counts at Bonneville ramping up, success rates at Drano Lake and the Wind River will climb as well. Anglers were averaging about a fish for every 8 rods but effort and success should improve markedly this week. Plugs, herring and prawns can all produce good catches in the weeks ahead. Eastern – The Deschutes is fishing well from Warm Springs to Maupin with redsides responding to nymphs as there aren't many hatches occurring. Water conditions and catch results are improving with the Crooked River water at good level for fishing and stable this week. Crane Prairie has been productive around Rock Creek. Kokanee catches have been fair but steady for fish averaging 16-inches at Wickiup. Fish are still holding fairly shallow with pink lures most effective recently.

Oregon fishing report

Willamette Valley/Metro- Fishery managers met early this week, deciding to extend the sport fishery above Bonneville Dam through Sunday. Spring chinook counts took a predictable nose-dive when flows jumped over the weekend but most believe fish will start pouring over Bonneville in the coming week. Managers will likely stall further sport opportunity until a significant number of fish pass upstream to meet treaty and other state obligations. Sturgeon fishing remains slow. Plagued with high water this week and last, the Willamette continues to offer fair fishing for those that apply high water strategies. The plus side is that the color/turbidity remains good, with levels ranging between 6 and 8. Most consider anything below 12 very fishable. Oregon City backtrollers finally got a taste of good fishing last week with Thursday, Friday and Saturday looking like the season was well underway, but the catch had dropped off a bit by Sunday as the next rise in water level took effect. The Falls counts are healthy for both springers and summer steelhead, so by all indications the fish are moving through, the savvy anglers will get theirs by fishing close to shore and finding seams that break up the flow. Getting your offering in the travel lane is paramount. Milwaukee, Sellwood, downtown and the harbor all continue to put out their share, but "lights out" fishing is far from the norm. The downstream troll from the Broadway Bridge all the way down to the head of Multnomah Channel remains a reliable tactic. Troll downstream as slow as possible, just fast enough to keep your bait spinning. Try to zig zag on the way downstream, as the turns will change the action of your bait, raising and lowering it a foot or two. Green and blue label herring with or without a flasher, held down with 6 to 8 ounces of lead is the standard. Some anglers are also doing well with Delta Divers fished the same way you would at Buoy Ten. The top twenty five feet of water is where most of your bites will happen. Sea lions have been problematic at times. Although the entire McKenzie opened for trout over the past weekend, water conditions have been hampering efforts. Conditions are forecast to improve, however, with the river in good shape for fishing over the coming weekend. Summer steelhead are also available. North Santiam levels are high but forecast to drop this week. Summer steelhead have been taken on the South Santiam. Clackamas steelheaders are taking a few in the high flows with spring chinook just starting to enter the lower river. The Sandy spiked from 10 feet to over 12 at the end of April but will be dropping this week. Summer and winter steelhead as well as spring chinook are available. Northwest – With most steelhead now on the spawning beds, anglers have their eye on spring chinook. Reports of one boat having a 3-fish day in the bubble over the weekend are believable but the ocean has picked back up again making it a poor option all week. Spring chinook have been rumored to have been caught in the bay but the first big push of fish should come in about another 10 days. With the Willamette Valley rivers largely unfishable for much of the season, anglers will be anxious to recreate in a more stable environment. The annual Bounty on the Bay fundraiser is now open for registration. Dates for the event are June 1st and 2nd and details can be found on the TEP web site at www.tbnep.org. A variety of offshore opportunity exists when the ocean lays down again. Spring chinook, offshore chinook, nearshore halibut, bottomfishing and crabbing are all strong options this month. Safe passage over north coast bars into a calm ocean is all that is required. Southwest – Charter boats launching out of central Oregon ports have done very well when the ocean has cooperated over the past week. Lingcod are on the bite with fish taken to 30 pounds. A variety of colorful rockfish have provided mostly limits to anglers. Crabbing is slow to fair but worthwhile to round out a seafood feast. Nearshore halibut opened on May 1st for depths of 40 fathoms or less. Rockfish may not be on board with halibut catches. The spring all depth halibut season will start on May 10th through 12th, continuing weekly on select days of the week, until the quota fills. Ocean chinook is now open and with a huge run of Klamath and Sacramento-bound fish forecast to return this year, optimism is high. Catches usually start off slow but will improve as the season progresses. Winchester Bay crabbing has been slow but will pick up as salinity improves and the water clears. Spring chinook fishing has been fair to good whenever the mainstem Umpqua is dropping. No springers have been reported on the North Umpqua. Crabbing has been fair to good for boats in Coos Bay. Low tides over the past weekend allowed clam diggers to take limits. When fresh springers have been entering the lower Rogue, fishing has been very good. Chinook to 38 pounds have been landed and the action will hold up whenever the ocean lays down, allowing fish to cross the bar while river flows remain favorable. The middle Rogue will be dropping this week with springer catches expected to improve. Bottom fishing out of the Port of Brookings has been excellent, yielding many limits of rockfish and lingcod. Area beaches are producing limits of surf perch when the ocean has laid down. The Diamond Lake opener on April 28th drew about 150 anglers to the still-frozen waters. Results were decent with many taking eight-fish limits of large trout on bait. Eastern – The lower Deschutes has been rising over the last week due primarily to snowmelt. It's high but clarity has been decent so prepare accordingly. Redsides are cooperating at Mecca Flats. Wickiup produced fair to good catches of large kokanee at the opener over the past weekend but action slowed on Sunday. Odell trollers have been enjoying good results with kokanee averaging 12 inches. Fishing at Howard Prairie was good over the past weekend for trout to 18 inches. SW Washington – The Cowlitz will continue to be the strongest option for spring chinook and summer steelhead but the Kalama and Lewis Rivers will also be viable options for the next 4 weeks. Unfortunately, flows remain high hampering angler success. Anglers are likely to see peak catches later than normal, with action likely to get better towards the end of the month. As Bonneville counts begin to swell, so should catches in the Wind River and Drano Lake fisheries. Drano fished excellent last Wednesday but has dropped off ever since. Regulations have changed here in recent years so be sure to check your favorite destination before venturing out.